Chapter 10 - Streams and Floods

A "100-year flood" has a _______ percent chance of occurring in any given year. A. 1 B. 100 C. 10 D. 0.1 E. 0.01

A

A(n) ___ drainage pattern of a river resembles a tree. A. dendritic B. trellis C. bush D. arbor E. leaf

A

A(n) ___ stream flows in a network of rivulets (subchannels) around numerous sandbars. A. braided B. meandering C. incised D. channelized E. rilled

A

A(n) ____ stream is one that exhibits a delicate balance between its transporting capacity and the sediment load available to it. A. graded B. ephemeral C. consequent D. incised E. beheaded

A

Certain features on the planet Mars resemble _____ on Earth. A. river channels B. hydrologic cycle C. alluvial fans D. deltas E. placer deposits

A

Discharge is the product of average stream width times average stream depth times ___. A. stream velocity B. stream sinuosity C. stream elevation D. stream gradient E. stream temperature

A

_____ meanders are meanders that retain their sinuous pattern as they cut vertically downward below the level at which they originally formed. A. Incised B. Excised C. Excavated D. Concentrated E. Superposed

A

_______ deposits are found in streams where running water has mechanically concentrated heavy sediment such as gold. A. Placer B. Lag C. Granular D. Pebble E. Agglomerated

A

Deltas may be river dominated, tide dominated or _____. A. tsunami dominated B. wave dominated C. glacier dominated D. wind dominated E. plate tectonic dominated

B

Rivers may develop pronounced sinuous (wiggly) curves called a ___ pattern. A. braided B. meandering C. incised D. channelized E. rilled

B

The delta of the ______ River is a wave-dominated delta that resembles the Greek letter delta and is the origin of the name. A. Mississippi B. Nile C. Amazon D. Colorado E. Ganges

B

The limit to downcutting of a stream is called the ___ level. A. head B. base C. flow D. stream E. foot

B

The process of deepening of a valley by erosion of a streambed is called __. A. lateral erosion B. down cutting C. faulting D. aggradation E. subsidence

B

__ beds form the main body of a delta with angles of inclination up to 20 to 35 degrees in small sandy deltas. A. Turbidite B. Foreset C. Backset D. Bottomset E. Topset

B

___ influences the velocity of a river along with gradient. A. Direction of flow B. Channel shape and roughness C. Temperature of the water D. Chemistry of the water E. Latitude of the river

B

____ are low ridges of flood deposited sediment that form on either side of a stream channel and thin away from the channel. A. Point bars B. Natural levees C. Incised meanders D. Deltas E. Oxbow lakes

B

________ are low ridges of flood-deposited sediment that form on both sides of a stream channel and thin away from the channel. A. Point bars B. Natural levees C. Oxbows D. Cut banks E. Deltas

B

A graded stream can be deepening its channel by down cutting while part of its energy is also widening its valley by ______ erosion. A. downward B. longitudinal C. lateral D. distal E. proximal

C

A river's velocity is faster ____. A. along the inside of a meander loop near the point bar B. along the center line of the stream channel, exactly halfway between point bar and cut bank C. along the outside of a meander loop near the cut bank D. at the water's surface, in contact with the atmosphere E. along the channel bed at the very deepest part of the channel

C

A stream's discharge is __. A. the volume of dissolved mineral matter carried by the stream in a unit of time B. the volume of solid sediment carried by the stream in a unit of time C. the volume of water passing through a specific point along the stream in a unit of time. D. the volume of excess water during flood stage E. the average amount of water in the entire stream system

C

On large alluvial fans, the _____ sediment is deposited near the mountains. A. finest B. clay C. coarsest D. quartz E. best sorted

C

The ______ is the total area drained by a river and its tributaries. A. flow area B. divide C. drainage basin D. domain E. hood

C

The movement and interchange of water between the sea, air and land can be visualized by the ____. A. longitudinal profile of a stream B. channelization procedures C. hydrologic cycle D. hydrosphere interactions such as precipitation E. solar radiation

C

___ is/are sudden localized floods of large volume and short duration, often triggered by heavy rainstorms. A. Sheetwash B. Dry flooding C. Flash floods D. Channel erosion E. Stream piracy

C

____ refers to sand grain movement in a series of short leaps or bounces off the bottom. A. Jumping B. Floating C. Saltation D. Hopping E. Vaulting

C

A ____ drainage pattern is one in which streams diverge outward likes spokes on a wheel. A. jointed B. tilted C. compass D. radial E. conical

D

A cutoff meander may become a crescent-shaped __. A. kettle lake B. moraine lake C. levee lake D. oxbow lake E. Yazoo lake

D

A stream can increase its length by _____. A. building a delta B. meandering C. headward erosion D. All of the answers are correct.

D

A(n) __ is the body of sediment deposited at the mouth of a river when the river's velocity decreases. A. apron B. alluvial fan C. bar D. delta E. wart

D

A(n) ___ is a step-like landform found above a stream and its floodplain. It is a remnant of an older flood plain or river-eroded flat surface. A. levee B. incised meander C. cut bank D. stream terrace E. upland plateau

D

Flood control structures along the Mississippi River surrounding New Orleans are predominantly _____. A. upstream dams B. riprap lining C. bypasses D. artificial levees E. All of the answers are correct.

D

Floods are described by ____, the average time between floods of a given size. A. discharge B. forecasting C. calendar year D. recurrence interval E. lunar month

D

Movement of cobbles and boulders by rolling, sliding, or dragging in a streambed is called ____ load. A. dissolution B. solution C. suspension D. traction E. saltation

D

Streams erode rock and sediment by ___. A. hydraulic action B. solution C. abrasion D. All answers are correct. E. None of the answers are correct.

D

The ______ load is sediment light enough to remain lifted indefinitely above the bottom by water turbulence. A. dissolution B. solution C. saltation D. suspension E. segregation

D

The gravel bed load of a stream moves by _____. A. dissolution B. solution C. suspension D. sliding and rolling E. flotation

D

A _____ is a ridge of sediment built by sedimentation on the middle or banks of a stream channel. A. levee B. flood plain C. meander loop D. channel E. bar

E

A ridge or strip of ground separating one drainage basin from another is termed a ____. A. delta B. neck C. crest D. plateau E. divide

E

A stream can lengthen itself by ____. A. headward erosion B. deposition of a delta C. meander-loop cut-off D. stream discharge E. Headward erosion and deposition of a delta are both correct, but meander-loop cut-off and stream discharge are incorrect.

E

In North America, the ___ separates streams that flow into the Pacific Ocean from those that flow into the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. A. Appalachian Mountain Range B. Mississippi River C. Continental Transect D. Sierra Nevada Mountain Range E. Continental Divide

E